SAO PAULO, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Brazil's once red-hot housing
market has turned cold quickly, forcing many developers to slam
the brakes on new construction, though one corner of the
industry is so far riding out the nation's worsening economic
slump.

The Brazilian real estate market is witnessing a drastic
reversal from four years ago, when an economic boom lifted
millions into an expanded middle class and fueled a home-buying
frenzy that pushed prices up by as much as 30 percent on an
annual basis.

At the time, developers like Cyrela Brazil Realty SA
and Rossi Residencial SA, flush with cash
from recent initial public offerings, launched into a building
binge of middle- and high-income housing to meet what they
expected would be continuously growing demand.
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